Speeches

Amb. Hull Presents Credentials

September 24, 2004

New US Ambassador to Sierra Leone Welcomed by President Kabbah

On August 19, 2004, the new US Ambassador to Sierra Leone, Thomas N. Hull, presented his letter of credence to his Excellency the President of Sierra Leone, Alhaji Dr. Ahmad Tejan Kabbah. During the ceremony, Ambassador Hull delivered the following remarks, emphasizing areas of great importance to relations between the US and Sierra Leone.

“Your Excellency,

Thank you for receiving me to present my Letter of Credence as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Sierra Leone and the Letter of Recall for my predecessor, Ambassador Peter R. Chaveas. I am honored that President George W. Bush has appointed me, with the consent of the United States Senate, to represent him and the government and people of the United States of America in your country.

Mr. President,

The United States shares many of the goals of your government. Our core foreign policy objectives are to achieve a more secure, more democratic, and more prosperous world. We are deeply concerned that peace must prevail in West Africa. We recognize Sierra Leone as a key to regional stability that can only be achieved through good governance and economic opportunity.

The United States has been encouraged by the return of peace to Sierra Leone and by the peaceful conduct of the recent local government elections. I intend to work with your government and civil society to build on those accomplishments. I fully recognize the challenges that you face in sustaining Sierra Leone’s recovery from civil war. The United States will continue to be the largest financial contributor to UNAMSIL, which has been successful in stabilizing conflict areas. Looking ahead, my government is committed to averting future conflict by cooperating with the Government of Sierra Leone in addressing the conditions that have contributed to strife.

Mr. President,

You have taken an important step forward with your government’s decision to decentralize. The return of elected local government after 32 years indicates that appropriate lessons were drawn from the tragic conflict and the two decades of economic and social decline that preceded it. Now that you have inaugurated elected councils throughout the country, the task turns to building their capacity to govern and to transferring government resources and powers from federal ministries to the councils. My embassy is ready to assist in achieving your vision. We believe that decentralization, sincerely and thoroughly implemented, will greatly contribute towards stability, security, and prosperity by efficiently allocating resources to achieve the development priorities of towns, districts, and the city of Freetown.

The United States of America advocates universally for key elements of democracy. Transparency and accountability to the people are essential for good governance. In this respect, your Anti-Corruption Commission and National Electoral Commission have particular potential, and will receive my attention, as will the grass-roots civic organizations that nurture democracy. Democracy also requires respect for the rule of law. The United States supports an autonomous, upright judiciary in Sierra Leone to sustain a more just society, and also the Special Court for Sierra Leone to bring justice to those who were most responsible for ravaging your country. Another essential aspect of democracy is respect for civil authority. The United States is providing training on the respective roles of civilians, military, and police in a democracy, while also supplying logistical guidance through PAE for Sierra Leone’s new armed forces to establish a more secure environment for economic development.

Democratic societies by definition respect human rights, and a particular concern of the United States is the status of women and children, most notably the problem of Trafficking in Persons. I would like to take this opportunity to applaud your initiative to introduce legislation that can strengthen government’s ability to combat Trafficking in Persons in Sierra Leone, and to urge that it be enacted and implemented quickly.

Mr. President,

I have spent much of my career promoting freedom of expression as a cornerstone of democracy around the world. I want to compliment you on the media climate in Sierra Leone that is among the most open in Africa. As you have often observed publicly, “with freedom comes responsibility.” My embassy will assist Sierra Leone’s print and broadcast media to attain and maintain high professional standards.

Democracy thrives best in an environment of economic development. I am distressed by Sierra Leone’s low per capita income, high illiteracy, low life expectancy, and other indicators of extreme poverty. This situation did not arise overnight, nor will it be repaired by tomorrow, but it does require sustained commitment by your government and the international donor community to be rectified. The United States of America will do its part bilaterally and through international and non-governmental organizations to upgrade education, stimulate agriculture, and fight disease, especially lassa fever and the pandemic of HIV/AIDS that is afflicting Africa.

I bring an appeal from Washington that you help us to help you by redoubling your government’s commitment to making Sierra Leone once again a beacon of hope for the region. Food security is a critical starting point, and your pronouncement that no one should go to bed hungry by 2007 is a commendable goal that should be achieved. Sierra Leone’s population is youthful, and the future of the country depends on the youth, too many of whom are now uneducated, unemployed, and disaffected. They need a brighter future to embrace to surmount the strife of the past. Working together, your government and mine can make that a reality.

Mr. President,

The American government takes reform of the diamond sector most seriously. Diamonds can contribute to Sierra Leone’s recovery or they can be a source of instability and violence. The United States will continue to assist diamond-producing communities to become more prosperous and secure by realizing a reasonable return on their resource.

Illicit diamonds also fuel the corruption that undercuts democracy, and they can be exploited by terrorists who intend to harm my country and others. My government looks to you together with us, other donors, and international financial institutions to regulate diamond exports and to institute banking reforms. I recognize that under your leadership regulated diamond exports have increased from only $1.45 million in 1999 to $120 million projected for this year, but many diamonds are still unaccounted for. With respect to money laundering, the United States of America urges swift enactment of the commendable legislation that you have introduced to deprive smugglers and terrorists of their favorite tool.

Trade and investment can be important engines for development. I would like to see Sierra Leone attract more interest from American companies by establishing more incentives for their engagement, and concurrently export more to the United States by taking advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) benefits for which Sierra Leone has qualified. American investment in Sierra Leone is low, but if existing and new investments such as Seaboard and Sierra Rutile, can succeed, more investment will follow. Implementation of your new investment code will be an important incentive.

Mr. President,

One of my principal responsibilities is to promote good relations on all levels between our governments and our peoples. I am honored to be the first Peace Corps Volunteer who served in Sierra Leone to return as Ambassador. I am indebted to Sierra Leoneans for their generosity to thousands of Peace Corps Volunteers over many years, and I intend to reciprocate that friendship during my tenure as Ambassador. One of my efforts, with the concurrence of your government, will be to advocate in Washington for the return of the Peace Corps to Sierra Leone when resources permit. In the interim, I plan to enhance the capacity of the U.S. Agency for International Development to deliver assistance to Sierra Leone. I will also continue the successful Department of Defense program that increases HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention in the Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces, and by extension in the public at large.

Closer relations between peoples depend on contact. Contact requires visas, and I am acutely aware that contact is restricted by the absence of visa services at the American Embassy in Freetown. I intend to rectify this anomaly during my tenure as Ambassador. However, because of global security concerns related to the war on terrorism, issuance of visas must await the embassy’s relocation to its new site, for which the assistance of your government is much appreciated. Meanwhile, with new biometric requirements, the processing of visas by the American Embassy in Conakry will be increasingly challenging, but I will do all within my power to streamline that process. An American Ambassador, however, does not have the legal authority to issue visas unilaterally.

A project to promote our mutual heritage that is of great interest to me is the preservation of Bunce Island from which thousands of Sierra Leoneans and other Africans unwillingly went to America under horrific and tragic circumstances, but survived and thrived to become a dynamic and creative piece of the American mosaic. Despite its reprehensible history, the Bunce Island ruins represent the long-standing connection between our countries and stand as a reminder of the value of freedom. Together, we can honor those who suffered and bring economic benefit to Sierra Leone by embracing Bunce Island’s preservation as a World Cultural Heritage Site.

Mr. President,

As Ambassador to your Republic, I look forward to frequent, cordial and frank dialogue with you and your government so that together we can achieve our shared objectives. Just as the United States seeks to assist Sierra Leone to prosper, I will also respectfully seek on occasion your assistance, such as support for American positions on issues of joint interest in international fora. Please communicate with me as needed, and be assured that as I represent America’s interests, I shall also be cognizant of our ultimate interest of having Sierra Leone be a peaceful, secure, democratic and prosperous member of the community of nations. Thank you, Mr. President.”